The Politics of Polarization in Europe

Europe’s politics is moving under our feet, and the labels are doing more heat than light. We sit down with sociologist and author Frank Furedi and political researcher Jacopo Custodi to sort through the surge of right-wing populism and the state of the far left across Europe, with Italy, Germany, Portugal, and the UK as key reference points. The question we keep coming back to is simple: are voters turning to populist parties because they want something dangerous, or because the political center stopped representing them?We push on the “is this fascism?” comparison and land in a more uncomfortable place. Even if today’s movements are not a 1930s replay, polarization can still tear at a shared national community, especially when politics turns into identity combat and institutions feel captured by cultural elites. We debate whether multiculturalism and identity politics drove the backlash, or whether populist leaders deliberately raise the temperature to win. Along the way we talk about uncivility, cancel culture, free speech, and why antisemitism can spread faster when every disagreement becomes moral warfare.Then we follow the money and the credentials. One of the sharpest divides is education, not income, and a growing pool of highly educated people are stuck in precarious work with fewer paths into a stable middle-class life. We end by looking forward: AI, relentless optimization, Europe’s risk aversion, and whether renewed welfare and economic security can steady democratic life without sliding back into mythic nostalgia.If you found this conversation useful, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review. What do you think is the real engine of Europe’s radicalization: culture, economics, or something else?Support Our WorkThe Center for Demographics and Policy focuses on research and analysis of global, national, and regional demographic trends and explores policies that might produce favorable demographic results over time. It involves Chapman students in demographic research under the supervision of the Center’s senior staff.Students work with the Center’s director and engage in research that will serve them well as they look to develop their careers in business, the social sciences, and the arts. Students also have access to our advisory board, which includes distinguished Chapman faculty and major demographic scholars from across the country and the world.For additional information, please contact Mahnaz Asghari, Associate Director for the Center for Demographics and Policy, at (714) 744-7635 or [email protected] us on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-feudal-future-podcast/Tweet thoughts: @joelkotkin, @mtoplansky, #FeudalFuture #BeyondFeudalism #centerfordemographicspolicy #chapmanuniversityLearn more about Joel's book 'The Coming of Neo-Feudalism': https://amzn.to/3a1VV87Sign Up For News & Alerts: http://joelkotkin.com/#subscribeThis show is presented by the Chapman Center for Demographics and Policy, which focuses on research and analysis of global, national and regional demographic trends and explores policies that might produce favorable demographic results ov...